My dad has stage 3 cancer on his gums in April. The cancer was small, 2cm. As a precaution, he had a bilateral neck dissection. Unfortunately 1 of the 27 nodes came back positive. As a result, he had radiation. He finished his 33 rounds to his neck and jaw in September.

He's been experiencing some pain on the right side of his neck where a tooth was removed. His regular CT scan follow up took place this week. Because of the concern for the area where tooth was removed, the dr asked me to call to check in on results. Unfortunately, we heard back today. The area of the tooth isn't an issue, but looks like there's some activity on his tongue and an area in the neck. The doctor scared me, but said nothing is confirmed until a biopsy is done. We see the surgeon in a few days.

Is it possible to have false CT scans? My dad doesn't complain of his tongue and his cancer was on the left side. Does an abnormal scan automatically mean cancer? It's only been 5 weeks since treatment completion and 5 months after initial surgery.

-concerned daughter